General News
1 April, 2026
Vandals no laughing matter
IT was back in December 2022 that the ‘Goss’ raised concerns by local residents about motorcyclists tearing up the ground at Hutchings Park at Craiglie, Port Douglas.
Back then, a number of illegal trail bike riders were churning up the grass, leaving rubber tyre tracks in the barbecue area and generally being a noise nuisance around Port Gardens residential area.
At the same time, newly-planted saplings were broken and damage caused to the public toilets. The main perpetrators appeared to be small groups of individuals, clearly alcohol-fuelled, inflicting general damage and destruction.
After a quiet period, trail bike riders have returned, taking advantage of the recent heavy rainfall and soft ground.
I encountered a group of youngsters in the act, clearly with no consideration for the park and its regular users, such as children playing and dog walkers or nearby residents.
Apart from accelerating and churning up the ground, I observed other members of the group being pulled along from the rear of the bike on boogie boards.
This itself could be a recipe for disaster.
As well as the damage, the quiet Sunday afternoon was spoilt with the sound of the screaming bike engines echoing around Port Gardens.
The incident was not reported to the police by local residents, so the local constabulary were unable to make any comment on the current situation. Queensland Police Service (QPS) do advise, however, that any situation can be reported by ringing triple zero.
I have also been advised that by doing this, it also helps with the statistics in terms of knowing what incidents are occurring in our communities.
Hutchings Park is a Douglas Shire Council-managed park and I know previously that both staff and management have been fed up with the ongoing damage and destruction.
With regards to this more recent situation, Douglas Shire Mayor, Lisa Scomazzon said: “I’m really disappointed to hear motorbikes have been ridden through Hutchings Park. Our parks and reserves are there for everyone to enjoy and when they’re used in ways that damage the ground, especially after rain, it affects the whole community.”
Hopefully this is a one-off, but I have sneaky suspicion this will not be the last we’ll hear, quite literally, from these local ‘Evil Kneivels’.
As with many situations, this one is no doubt difficult for police, especially over the weekend.
All that people can do is report the problem at the time, but certainly not try to take the law into their own hands.
I’m off to walk the dog, hopefully without issue, so for now it’s Gazza signing out.
Send your stories to gazza@cairnslocalnews.com.au
